The Hawks clinched their spot in the Eastern Conference play-in tournament with Wednesday’s home win over the Wizards.
Moving forward, they can finish no higher than the No. 7 seed and no lower than the No. 9 seed in the Eastern Conference. So, here’s how the tournament works (which began during the 2020 pandemic season and became a postseason staple a year later) and potential scenarios for the Hawks – a play-in participant as the No. 9 seed last season:
-The four-team play-in tournament (for teams who finished the regular season seventh through 10th in the East) will be held April 11-14, with the conference playoffs beginning April 15.
-The seventh and eighth seeds will meet in the first play-in game, with No. 9 facing No. 10 in the other.
-The winner of 7 versus 8 will advance to the conference playoffs, while the loser will meet the winner of the 9 versus 10 matchup. If No. 8 defeats No. 7, then No. 8 advances to the conference playoffs as the No. 7 seed.
-That winner also will advance to the conference playoffs.
-The Hawks are eighth in the Eastern Conference with two regular-season games remaining (Friday vs. 76ers, Sunday at Celtics).
-The Heat currently hold the seventh spot and have beaten the Hawks three times this season.
-The Raptors and the Bulls currently are ninth and 10th in the East.
So, what does this all mean:
Q: Why is finishing seventh or eighth, better than ninth or 10th?
A: If the Hawks were to finish the regular season seventh or eighth, they could earn their spot in the playoffs with only one win. If they lose their first game, their bid for the postseason would not end, and they would have another shot.
If the Hawks finish Nos. 9 or 10, they have to win their first and second games to get into the playoffs as the eighth seed. And if they lose that first matchup, they’re eliminated.
Q: What does the final stretch of games look like for the 7-10 teams?
A: With the Nets’ hold on the sixth seed anything but secure, the final couple of games will give a clearer picture. The Nets don’t play again until Friday, but the Heat play the Sixers on Thursday.
If the Heat lose, they clinch a spot in the play-in, and the Nets secure their spot in the playoffs. If the Heat win, they win the Southeast Division title and get another shot to nab the sixth seed with a win over the Wizards and, or the Magic.
Meanwhile the Raptors will be locked into the ninth seed if they lose their next matchup to the Celtics on Friday. So, that means the Hawks could secure a spot in the 7/8 game against the Heat or Nets with one more win or one more Toronto loss.
The Hawks have two more games left this season, against the Sixers on Friday and the Celtics on Sunday. The Sixers will be on the second night of back-to-back games, while the Hawks will be coming off one night of rest.
The Bulls are locked in to the 10th seed after the Hawks beat them Tuesday and they lost to the Bucks on Wednesday.
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